June 18 2010

12:27 AM

Rafael Cabrera-Bello couldn’t help but peek at the leader
board. Not to put pressure on himself, mind you. Just to savor the
moment. The first man off the 10
th tee, a qualifier, a guy who had visa problems in
Madrid and whose clubs spent Sunday night in the Philly airport, a
guy who was playing in his first U.S. Open -- and his first major,
period -- looked up Thursday morning and saw his name on top of the
leader board. Did we mention he can also laugh at himself? “I
was just enjoying it and almost having a laugh,’’ he
chuckled. “What’s going on right here. What am I
doing?’’ Leading the 110
th U.S. Open. First, as the leader in the
clubhouse. Then as one of member of the foursome sharing the early
first-round lead at 1-under-par 70. “I could only dream about
a day like this,’’ said the 26-year-old Spaniard.
“I maybe imagined in when I was 8 or 9 years old but never
expected something like this. I just wanted to play and get better.
Now? I don’t expect anything.’’ Except maybe for
this dream not to end. It didn’t start that way. Yes, the
2009 Austrian Golf Open champ did birdie four of his last seven
holes to make it here through the U.S. Open qualifier. But then . .
. well, it’s always something. He flew from his home in
the Canary Islands to Madrid, where they found a problem with his
visa application. He missed his flight to Philadelphia, was
cleared, spent the night with his uncle, then flew out the next
day. But at the luggage carousel in California . . . you guessed
it. His clubs weren’t there. US Air didn’t really lose
them, though. “They forgot them in
Philadelphia,’’ he said. So, he wound up walking some
of the course Monday, got Titleist to lend him a few wedges to
limber up with and .. . . he played his first practice round
Tuesday. When he was announced on the 10
th tee at 7 a.m., he was surprised to see a tiny crowd.
“They didn’t come to see me,’’ he
grinned, “but there were some guys there.’’ Maybe
they should have followed him. Cabrera-Bello may be ranked 204
th in the world and may have missed his last four cuts
on the European Tour, but he took the world’s best to school
at Pebble. Four birdies, three bogeys. Steady for an opening Open
round, let alone your first one. And your first major round.
“I would have been a fool to expect anything coming in here
but I played well today,’’ he said. ”It’s
my first major and I want to learn just being here and it’s
now one shot at a time.’’ His worst shot of the day?
This second shot at the 18
th. “I pulled a 2-iron into the middle of the
Pacific,’’ he said. “But I was steady for the
rest of the round and played smart and didn’t put myself in
danger.’’ This is Cabrera-Bello’s first trip West
of Arizona. He played “15-20” tournaments in the States
as a junior, then another dozen as an amateur. Although he
considered a U.S. university, he went to college in the Canary
Islands. He’s now in his fourth season on the European Tour
– his sister Emma plays on the Ladies European Tour –
and his goal is the PGA TOUR. He could have gotten wrapped up in
the moment. He could have lost himself – as some do –
with the scenic backdrop of the Monterey Peninsula that frames
Stillwater Cove. Instead, he learned something about his game and
his future. “Today this course, if you lost your
concentration for a minute it’s going to beat you and hit you
very hard,’’ he said. “I really tried to stay
calm and focused n my task and I think I did that.’’
And, yes, everyone’s talking World Cup to him.
“They’ll say, “Hey.. how’s soccer
going,’’ he grinned. “(I say) Alright. Thank
you.’’ Behind him, players walked into the locker room
shaking their heads. Pebble had gotten the best of them. Retief
Goosen shot 75, Stewart Cink shot 77 and Geoff Ogilvy shot 79. But
Cabrera-Bello? He was smiling and ready to go have a bite of lunch
with his parents Rafael and Emma. And savor one of the best days of
his week. “Right now, finishing my first round with my
parents and seeing my name at the top of the leader
board,’’ he grinned, “is as good as it
gets.’’
-- Melanie Hauser